Oldest active youth fire brigade warden celebrates two anniversaries
Fire Chief Dietmar Barthel turns 70 on 26 January and has led the youth fire brigade in Erfenschlag for 15 years
Fire Chief Dietmar Barthel, youth fire warden of the Erfenschlag volunteer fire brigade, is celebrating his 70th birthday on 26 January 2014 and is expecting many guests on this special Sunday. "Der Runde" will be celebrated in the Waldklause Einsiedel restaurant: a delegation of comrades from the Erfenschlag volunteer fire brigade, the town fire brigade association and the town youth fire brigade association as well as from the fire brigade department of the town council will of course be among the well-wishers from 3 pm.
The commendable firefighter is also looking forward to his second anniversary this year on 1 September 2014: Dietmar Barthel has been leading the youth fire brigade in Erfenschlag, which he himself founded in 1999 with 20 girls and boys, for 15 years. Today, the Erfenschlag youth fire brigade has only three members - two girls aged 14 and 16 and one boy aged 14 - and is struggling to recruit the next generation of volunteer firefighters. For Dietmar Barthel, a passionate firefighter and now the oldest active youth fire brigade warden in Chemnitz, it remains a major challenge to get children and young people interested in this wonderful and important voluntary work. The youth fire brigade's extensive duty rota focuses on training, including on topics such as accident prevention and rescuing injured persons, radio operator training, fire prevention, vehicle and equipment knowledge, extinguishing fires, e.g. with a ladder exercise using practical examples, as well as learning how to tie knots and connect lines. In addition to their duties, there is of course no shortage of sport, fun and entertainment: Dietmar Barthel visited the airport fire brigade in Dresden with the young firefighters and organises and supervises the annual witches' bonfire on site in Erfenschlag in the outdoor area of the FFW equipment shed in Dr.-Karl-Wolf-Straße. Regular exercise is also a matter of course for the 70-year-old, who loves going to the swimming pool as much as playing table tennis. Last but not least, the jubilarian is also a talented craftsman and is happy to pass this knowledge on to the young firefighters in spé: a birdhouse, a smokehouse and an illuminated candle arch were created.
Contact: Media representatives who would like to contact Fire Chief Dietmar Barthel directly should contact Frank Kutzner, Head of the Erfenschlag Fire Brigade, on 0179-5497170 .